Miami GP 2026 Qualifying: Where to Watch

Miami GP weekend starts Friday, May 1, and qualifying decides the grid for Sunday's race. It's also the first sprint race on the 2026 US calendar — which compresses the whole weekend and changes where qualifying actually sits in the schedule. If you've been trying to figure out fórmula 1 classificação onde assistir or where F1 qualifying airs in the US now that ESPN is gone, this guide has the full setup for the Miami GP, with session times in both Brasília (BRT) and US Eastern (ET) and every broadcast option available in each country.

Miami GP 2026 Full Session Schedule (BRT + ET)

Miami runs the sprint format this year, so the weekend has five sessions instead of the usual six. Save these times — both timezones included.

Friday, May 1

• FP1 — 10:30 BRT / 9:30 AM ET
• Sprint Qualifying — 14:30 BRT / 1:30 PM ET

Saturday, May 2

• Sprint Race — 10:00 BRT / 9:00 AM ET
• Qualifying — 14:00 BRT / 1:00 PM ET ← the grid-setter for Sunday

Sunday, May 3

• Race — 14:00 BRT / 1:00 PM ET

Saturday is the busiest day — sprint race in the morning, qualifying in the afternoon — and both sessions need to be watched live if you want to understand Sunday's race narrative. For every session time across the full 2026 season, bookmark the GridLine Club race calendar, which lists every practice, qualifying, sprint, and race in BRT and ET side by side.

Where to Watch Miami GP Qualifying in the US

The US broadcast landscape changed completely for 2026. ESPN no longer carries Formula 1 — the rights moved to Apple TV starting with the 2026 season under a five-year deal.

Apple TV: the new F1 home in the US

Apple TV is now the only place to watch Formula 1 live in the United States. Every practice session, qualifying round, sprint race, and Grand Prix airs on Apple TV, including Miami GP qualifying on Saturday, May 2 at 1:00 PM ET.

Pricing: $12.99/month or $99/year. That single subscription includes:

• Every F1 session live
• F1 TV Premium included free — this previously cost $129/year as a standalone subscription
• 4K Dolby Vision broadcasts
• Multi-view (up to 4 camera feeds simultaneously)
• Onboard cameras for all 20 drivers
• Team radio feeds
• Real-time telemetry

All practice sessions stream free on Apple TV without a subscription — Apple's way of letting new fans sample F1. But qualifying and the race require the paid subscription.

Apple TV works on iPhone, iPad, Android, Roku, Fire TV, gaming consoles, and any web browser at tv.apple.com. If you were already an F1 TV Premium subscriber, the Apple TV deal is genuinely better value — same premium features, lower annual cost, plus the main broadcast commentary bundled in.

What about ABC?

Apple's F1 deal is exclusive. Unlike the old ESPN setup where some races aired on ABC free-to-air (including Miami), Apple TV now holds all rights. Miami GP qualifying will not air on ABC in 2026.

Where to Watch Miami GP Qualifying in Brazil

Brazilian F1 coverage also changed in 2026. Band held F1 rights for five seasons (2021-2025) but those rights moved to Globo starting in 2026, under a deal running through 2028.

SporTV: every qualifying session live

For Miami GP qualifying at 14:00 BRT on Saturday, May 2, SporTV is your live option. SporTV carries every practice, qualifying, sprint, and race session across the full 24-race 2026 calendar — the most complete coverage available in Brazil from a single provider.

Globoplay with SporTV add-on

If you've cut cable or watch on mobile/tablet, Globoplay is the streaming equivalent. A standard Globoplay subscription alone does NOT include live F1 qualifying — you need the SporTV add-on. Once that's set up, qualifying streams on mobile, tablet, smart TV, and browser. Geo-restrictions apply outside Brazil.

Narration for the 2026 season is handled by Luís Roberto and Everaldo Marques.

TV Globo free-to-air

Globo broadcasts 15 of the 24 Grands Prix free-to-air, either live or on delay, depending on the race. The Miami GP race itself is expected on TV Globo open broadcast, but qualifying sits behind the SporTV/Globoplay paywall — consistent with Globo's broader 2026 F1 strategy.

F1 TV Pro

F1 TV Pro is still available in Brazil (~R$29/month) with onboards, team radio, and telemetry. It supplements SporTV's main broadcast for fans who want the data layer during qualifying.

What to Expect From Miami GP Qualifying

Sprint weekends compress practice time. Teams get only one 60-minute free practice session (Friday's FP1) before being locked into setup decisions. That creates a more volatile qualifying session — less data, more risk, and bigger performance swings between teams that got their setup right versus those who didn't.

The championship context

Heading into Miami, Kimi Antonelli leads the championship with 72 points after winning in China and Japan. George Russell is second on 63, Charles Leclerc third on 49, and Lewis Hamilton fourth on 41 in his first Ferrari season. Mercedes has locked out pole position at all three races so far. The question for Miami qualifying is whether anyone — Ferrari, McLaren, or Red Bull — can break that pole streak on a track Mercedes hasn't yet raced in 2026-spec cars.

Miami's track characteristics

The Miami International Autodrome rewards setups with strong medium-speed aero balance. The three DRS zones — the main straight, the 1.3km back straight after Turn 16, and the northern loop — help overtaking but qualifying is typically won or lost in the tight Turns 11–16 complex. Track temperature matters: Miami in May runs hot, which affects tire preparation and single-lap grip. Expect pole times in the low 1:27s range based on 2024-2025 historical data.

Q1/Q2/Q3 Format Refresher

If you're newer to F1, qualifying runs as a 60-minute session split into three knockout rounds:

• Q1 (18 min): All 20 cars run. The slowest 5 are eliminated (positions 16-20).
• Q2 (15 min): Remaining 15 cars run. The slowest 5 are eliminated (positions 11-15).
• Q3 (12 min): Top 10 cars fight for pole position and the front of the grid.

The grid order from qualifying sets the race start on Sunday. Pole position gets the clean side of the track at Miami and a typical 0.4-second lap-time advantage over second place on the opening lap — meaningful in a race where track position is hard to recover.

Your Miami GP Qualifying Setup, Sorted

Saturday, May 2, 14:00 BRT / 1:00 PM ET — that's the moment the grid gets decided. In Brazil: SporTV on cable, or Globoplay with the SporTV add-on on streaming. In the US: Apple TV at $12.99/month covers qualifying plus every other session of the weekend, plus F1 TV Premium features included free.

For timezone conversions every race weekend, the GridLine Club race calendar shows all sessions in both BRT and ET. For the full Miami GP preview covering the race, circuit layout, ticket info, and championship stakes, read our 2026 Miami GP guide. For deeper context on why Mercedes has been dominating qualifying all season, see Why Mercedes Is So Fast in 2026. And for the current championship standings, we update after every race.

Don't miss the qualifying session. Miami's sprint weekend means less practice, more volatility, and potentially the first non-Mercedes pole of 2026.